Anyone with experience of Spyware Doctor?

[AvengerUK]

As per title, i will explain more (in another reply!) if anyone has used it before!

[rgt247]

I have used it for over a year now currently on v5

[Rik]

I've used it, Avenger, but had problems with it which they acknowledge and had down for a future fix, unspecified date. I moved on. Can't remember what the problem was now, but my memory may get jogged...

[AvengerUK]

Well, ive used 4 for a while. I havent bothered to put it on my new install yet, as im waiting for V5 Non beta to come out!

Anyway, i remember it using quite a bit of memory etc, due to this "onguard" thing, although turned off, the program still sits in your processes.Any idea how to turn the damm thing off? I only want it active when i want to scan!

[Rik]

Have you run MSCONFIG to see what it loads at startup? I moved on to Webroot's SpySweeper after my problems with the Doc (not the forum member ), and found it did the same. Like you, I only want to scan when I feel the need, not having the thing sitting there hogging the system all the time. I disabled all its start up options, services and programs, and it's quite happy to start up when I need it (though it doesn't fully go away again until a re-boot).

[rgt247]

Thats why i upgraded to v5 link to stop the scans when it starts up. If you go to network guard click cancel to stop the scans. I find that it starts back up after a min or just keep clicking cancel till they stop.

On v5 I do not have this problem. The betas recently have improved. Much more stable. The first one I tried gave a BSOD on boot up. 

[AvengerUK]

Thanks for the info

A newsletter i got (dated 24th feb) was estimating the release a week later..which was obviously wrong! - you wouldnt happen to know how wrong would you? - Ive had bad experiences with beta's, and with this new XP install im "being very, very carefull"

[rgt247]

I had the same email. I don't think it will be long now before it's released properly. 
Running now with no problems for me. The scans are much faster.

[William]

Have you run MSCONFIG

Even better is Autoruns from Sysinternals (don't let the M$ wrapper put you off).

[Rik]

Thanks for that link, William, a handy little utility.

[mrapoc]

I feel free anti spyware programs do just about enough - with a bit of common sense too  No more dodgy sites for you!

[Rik]

Does that mean I have to stop visiting here? 

[AvengerUK]

Hmmm,

Still considering getting/trying NOD32. In your personal experience, would running my current setup: AVG Free with Spyware Doctor or just running NOD32.. which one would be:

1) More effecitve and "safe"
2) Less resource hungry

[William]

No contest. NOD32 on both counts.

[jupiter]

Absolutely agree.  Been delighted with NOD32 over several months now.  AVG (which I still have on a laptop) tends to have server hangups on updates from time to time, then fails to update and not let you know.

[Rik]

Do you think there's a risk we will be labelled NOD32 fanboys?

I've been using it a couple of years and it's the best AV I have ever used. I've now consolidated my three licences into one, to make it easier to manage. Eset were very helpful in doing this for me. Of course, it also has a great support forum here.

[AvengerUK]

Well, you've persuaded me to try it

Would it be "better" to try the trail first, or just perchase it? Ive done some reasearch apart from listening to the fan boys - and it cirtinally seems one of the best solutions.

(note: guessing i have to "uninstall" avg first, im just hoping it "unistalls" properly )

[Rik]

Hi Avenger

Go for the trial, you can upgrade it to the full product by purchasing a licence. Do visit the support forum I noted, and read Blackspear's tips on setup, they make a world of difference.

You will need to uninstall AVG first, but I don't think that's too bad, it's the big boys that try to take your system over and not let go. I will no longer use Norton products as a result.

[AvengerUK]

"Antivirus MONitor (AMON)
An on-access (memory-resident) scanner, which automatically scans files before they're accessed.

NOD32
An on-demand scanner, which can be run manually on specific files or disk segments. It can also be scheduled to run during off-peak times.

Internet MONitor (IMON)
A memory-resident scanner that runs on the Winsock level to prevent infected files from reaching the computer's disks. Its scans internet web browsing traffic (HTTP) and incoming e-mail via the POP3 protocol.

E-mail MONitor (EMON)
An auxiliary module for scanning incoming/outgoing e-mails via the MAPI interface, such as Microsoft Outlook Microsoft Exchange.

Document MONitor (DMON)
Utilizes the proprietary Microsoft API for scanning Microsoft Office documents (including Internet Explorer)"

Is it possible to disable some of these? I have no use for the DMON (dont use office or IE!), Email (dont use that either...) or Internet monitor (i can see this causing "issues" with games and alike..)

[William]

Yes.

You can 'unload' them as part of the set-up.

Imon won't interfere with anything except when you visit sites that try to download nasties (technical term).

Try it  - you've nothing to lose and I think that you will be pleasantly surprised.

[AvengerUK]

Thanks William. Ill try Imon then - Leaving EMON and DMON off however.

[Rik]

I agree with William, DMON and EMON are superfluous if you don't use MS Office. Personally, I'd recommend leaving IMON active. For expert advice, ask here though.

In the time I've been using NOD, I haven't seen any impact but I have seen some warnings, not just from files but from sites, since it does have an element of malware protection built in. From the Eset website, "This program offers integrated, real-time protection against viruses, worms, trojans, spyware, adware, phishing, and hackers. It features ThreatSense® Technology and protects single computers and networks alike against more new and evolving threats ". In my experience, this is very true, and it's IMON that provides the extra protection.

[AvengerUK]

I have AMON, IMON and NOD32 activated according to the side menu

This scheduling has me confused however:

http://www.avengeruk.co.uk/esetnodsettings.JPG

What do these mean? I dont want updates/scans to be run at startup - im a impatient fool

EDIT: Also noticed that IMON scans what firefox is loading, and AMON scans cookies.txt etc - what a good idea!

EDIT: Just run a full NOD32 scan - found nothing but locked files (which im assuming should be locked!)

Am i right in thinking it find spyware/malware aswell via this scan?

If it *works* when it finds something (sure it does...anything is better than avg when they find something, avg just falls over at that point!) im extremely happy with it.

+1 to fan boys...

[mrapoc]

Try safe mode b4 scanning dude  Less locked files then. Only thing nod32 doesnt block well is spyware but anything from trojans to viruses to backdoors to worms, nod32 will pwn  8)

[Rik]

I have AMON, IMON and NOD32 activated according to the side menu

This scheduling has me confused however:

What do these mean? I dont want updates/scans to be run at startup - im a impatient fool

I run those on all my machines, Avenger, and tbh I've never noticed an impact. You don't have the update checking showing there, but that may be a 'feature' of the trial version.

EDIT: Just run a full NOD32 scan - found nothing but locked files (which im assuming should be locked!)

There's a bunch of files, like pagefile.sys, which Windows keeps locked, not a sign of a problem, but you can check a few more if you scan from safe mode as Mo says. I wouldn't worry though if the files are all system files.

Am i right in thinking it find spyware/malware aswell via this scan?

Not that I've ever seen, but then it's always alerted in real time and stopped anything nasty arriving, so I can't be sure.